Brown's victory is a harbinger of voter discontent with the Democrats nationally, and it also breaks the party's filibuster-proof majority in the U.S. Senate.

In a state like Texas, where Republicans already enjoy an edge among voters, it may mean Democrats like former Houston Mayor Bill White or millionaire Farouk Shami would find themselves swimming against the tide to win the governor's office.

But it also could mean a Democrat such as John Sharp would benefit from national party financing if Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison carries through on her promise to resign, prompting a special election. A victory for the Democrats would at least briefly restore their supermajority in the Senate.

“If that occurs, the Democrats will unify behind a candidate and work their tails off to win that seat,” said Texas Democratic Chairman Boyd Richie.

Democrats have not won a statewide election since 1994. The dynamics of a special election are different, though, and the result is more dependent on Republican and Democratic voter turnout efforts than a general election.

Hutchison has said she will resign after her primary contest with Gov. Rick Perry and activist Debra Medina. However, the senator also has said the resignation will not occur until after the Democrats have given up on passing national health care reform or global warming legislation known as “cap and trade.”

Hutchison has been leaving the impression with both Democrats and Republicans that her promise to resign win or lose in the governor's race is something imminent after the primary, though she also has promised to fight against the Democratic legislation.

“I think this is the time to leave the Senate,” she told the Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News last week. “If I don't win the governorship, I'm going to start a new career.”

Effects of resignation

Mark Jones, chairman of the political science department at Rice University, said that until now the timing of Hutchison's resignation has been an “intramural” question among Republicans wanting to run for her seat, but now “it clearly has national implications.”

If Hutchison resigns, Perry will name an interim senator and call a special election.

Sharp, the only Democrat still in the race for Hutchison's seat, said he would welcome the national party's money but would not want to be perceived as the one partisan vote that gives the leadership whatever it wants.

“That guy in Massachusetts won because he rejected both parties,” Sharp said. “If somebody is counting on me going up there and voting on legislation or to stop a filibuster that's bad for Texas, they're going to be disappointed.”

A former Texas energy regulator, he said he has particular problems with the Democrats' proposals on global warming.

He said efforts to get a short-term partisan gain, by the national party backing him for the Senate to regain the supermajority, likely would fade quickly if Democrats lose seats in other states in the general election.

Race for governor

While the Massachusetts fallout could help Sharp, it likely would hurt the Democrats in the race for governor.

A Rasmussen Reports poll taken Sunday showed both Hutchison and Perry defeating White if the election were today. Perry led 50 percent to White's 40 percent; Hutchison led 52 percent to 37 percent. That same survey showed 57 percent of Texans oppose the Democrats' national health care plan.

The Massachusetts defeat and the national mood will make winning difficult for White, Jones said.

“He's going to have to separate himself from the national Democratic Party,” Jones said. “Not only does he have to run as a Democrat, he's got to run on a label that is not as positive as it was a year ago.”

Bryan Preston, spokesman for the Republican Party of Texas, said the general election campaign will put White in the awkward position of having to distance himself from national party policies.

“The fact we can win in Massachusetts means we can win anywhere,” Preston said. “Bill White will have a much harder time than he thought competing in Texas.”

White spokeswoman Katy Bacon said the election will turn not on national issues, but on ones important to Texans.

“Bill White isn't about the agenda of a political party and never has been,” Bacon said.

San Antonio Express-News reporter Peggy Fikac contributed to this story.